White Papers

 

Developing A Grading System for Digital Video Quality
By Dave Higgins, Vice President, Quality Assurance, & Chuck Wester, Project Engineer

Presented at the 2009 Cable Show, this technical paper focuses on an end-to-end approach toward measuring and improving video service delivery. Specific topics include the potential impediments to quality that can occur at each touch-point between the origination of a live sports event or studio production and the customer’s viewing experience, and the role of probes and subjective video quality analysis in quality assurance practices. NCTA technical papers may be purchased at the NCTA Bookstore. Or, for more information about this paper, email a request to cmc_denver@cable.comcast.com

 

CONNECTING CABLE’S NETWORK AND APPLICATIONS WITH ITS
INDUSTRY PARTNERS WHILE MAINTAINING OUR INDIVIDUALITY”

By Mitch Weinraub, Executive Director, Products and Services, Thomas Engdahl, Senior Vice President & General Manager, Radiance Technologies, and Joshua Seiden, Senior Director, Engineering and Product Development

With the cable industry working aggressively to expand the range of services that meet consumers demand for personalized programming, this 209 NCTA Technical paper describes the requirements for connecting cable systems serving standalone markets and larger MSOs, both vertically and horizontally. Network-based solutions for meeting the needs of advertisers and other sources for advanced interactive video services are also discussed. NCTA technical papers may be purchased at the NCTA Bookstore. Or, for more information about this paper, email a request to cmc_denver@cable.comcast.com

 

INCREASING MSO ADVERTISING REVENUES THROUGH MANAGEMENT OF AD SKIPPING
By Dan Holden, Comcast Fellow/Chief Scientist

This 2009 NCTA technical paper describes emerging technologies that allow the industry to seize market opportunities that are created by shifts in consumer behavior, such as ad-skipping and fast-forwarding through content that doesn’t respond to personal interests. The paper descibes an innovative solution that leverages the action of ad skipping as a catalyst for allowing advertisers, cable programming networks, and cable system operators to generate additional revenue. NCTA technical papers may be purchased at the NCTA Bookstore. Or, for more information about this paper, email a request to cmc_denver@cable.comcast.com

 

Emergency Preparedness: Essential Elements for Business Continuity of Broadcast Video Delivery When Disasters Strike
By Mitch Weinraub, Executive Director, Products and Services

Presented at NAB Show 2009, this paper uses the Comcast Media Center’s experiences as the disaster recovery services provider for a number of diverse content services providers to outline the requirements for a comprehensive disaster recovery and business continuity plan. Specific topics include determining the right amount to invest in a disaster recovery plan, identifying the best location for a disaster recovery facility and a checklist of the operational requirements for assuring business continuity. NAB Show Broadcast Engineering Conference Proceedings are available at the NAB Bookstore.  Or, for more information about this paper, email a request to cmc_denver@cable.comcast.com 
  

The Unique Challenges Faced by Cable Systems Serving Smaller Markets as They Expand to Meet Conditional Access and OCAP Requirements

A 2007 NCTA technical paper co-written by Gary Traver, Senior Vice President  & COO, and James Capps, Executive Director, Systems Engineering & Integrated Technology, for Comcast Media Center.

The authors provide a conceptual model for a cost-effective solution for meeting the expenses and challenges involved in deploying nextgen set tops and Tru2way-enable devices.  The paper is available in the NCTA Bookstore: http://www.nctatechnicalpapers.com/PublicationContents.html#Tech07

  

Using 3:1 Compression for optimizing MPEG 2 HDTV

June 2007 - Written by Ren Finley, Director of Advanced Engineering for the CMC, this technical paper outlines the techniques that may be used for providing a competitive viewing experience while optimizing the bandwidth requirements for HD.  The paper was presented at the 2007 SCTE CableTec Expo and is available at http://www.scte.org/devams/products.cfm/

 

The role of media management agents in meeting the consumer’s content management requirements

January 2007 - Presented at the 2007 SCTE Emerging Technologies Conference, this paper from Mitch Weinraub, CMC’s Executive Director, Products & Services, explores the challenges and opportunities in developing solutions that allow customers to manage and move content across their media devices.  The paper is available in ther SCTE Bookstore: http://www.scte.org/devams/products.cfm/

 

Cable Television 2.0 - Cable operators weigh strategies for launching an all-digital service

September 2006 - Written by Bruce Davis, Vice President and Administration for the CMC, this cover story for the September/October 2006 issue of The Financial Manager magazine outlines the role of migrating more analog channels to digital formats, paving the way for launching a host of advanced services, including HDTV and video on demand.  The article is available online at http://www.bcfm.com/docs/09102006CableTelevision.pdf

 

All digital –the role of centralized content management and techniques for improving digital video quality

June 2006 - This technology paper from Dave Higgins, Vice President of Quality Assurance for the CMC, reviews the digital compression techniques that can optimize bandwidth efficiency while maintaining competitive video quality levels for cable channels delivered in standard definition.  The paper was presented at the June 2006 SCTE CableTec Expo and is available from the SCTE Bookstore, at http://www.scte.org/devams/products.cfm/

 

VRN: Incorporating Video Mosaics into an IPG for Both Linear and VOD Content

January 2006 - Dave Higgins, the CMC’s VP of Quality Assurance and formerly VP of engineering and information technology, describes how CMC's video-rich navigation (VRN), developed in conjunction with GuideWorks, has now integrated linear TV and VOD choices onto one portal. The paper was presented at the Janaury 2006 SCTE Emerging Technologies Conference and is available from the SCTE Bookstore, at http://www.scte.org/devams/products.cfm/